Well, the good folks at the N.C. Coalition for Lobbying and Government Reform want us to think more broadly about our elections, and the system that has allowed legislators to draw the lines and essentially choose their voters.

This evening in Greensboro the coalition will host a town hall meeting to discuss why North Carolina needs a new, nonpartisan system for redistricting. Executive Director Jane Pinsky[3] says without an independent process, don’t expect much to change:

“The result is districts with such partisan leanings that many North Carolina voters have no realistic prospect of holding their senators and representatives accountable for legislative votes except in party primaries — in which incumbents typically have significant advantages.”

A poll[4] conducted last spring by the nonpartisan N.C. Center for Voter Education[5] found that 69 percent of North Carolina voters are concerned about the influence of partisan politics in creating our voting maps. Seventy-seven percent of those surveyed believe there is a conflict of interest when legislators are drawing their own districts.